Liner for wells



Dec. 31, 1940.

. INVENTOR JOHN S. CARROLL J, s. CARROLL LINER FOR WELLS Filed Feb. 5, 1937 l III.-

Patented Dec. 31, 1940 UNITED STATES PATENT-OFFICE LINER FOR WELLS John S. Carroll, Yonkers, N. Y., assignor to Johns- Manville Corporation, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 5, 1937, Serial No. 124,169 7 Claims. (01. 166-5) 'I'hisinvention relates to a liner for a portion of a drilled deep hole, such as an oil well, gas well, or the like.

The invention is particularly useful in connection with oil well drilling operations and will be illustrated by description with reference thereto. It is to be understood, however, that the invention may be used in connection with the temporary lining of other deep and narrow drilled holes that may require subsequent deepening.

In drilling for oil, it is frequently desirable to test a given stratum or level for rate of flow of oil therefrom. In such a case, there is lowered into the well an assembly of metal casings of usual type but perforated at close intervals and of outside diameter just slightly less than the inside diameter of the hole. With this assembly constituting a temporary liner in position at the bottom of the well, the flow of oil is gauged, the

liner meanwhile holding back the material of the wall of the hole.

When the test offlow is completed, the liner is withdrawn, so that drilling operations may be resumed, if it is desired to extend the hole to a lower level. However, there is sometimes much difliculty in withdrawing the liner.

The present invention comprises a liner and liner assembly that are crushable, so that, when the test at a given level is'completed, the drilling may be resumed without attempting to remove the liner.

A preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the attached drawing and the invention will be described for the purpose of 85 exemplificatio'n, in connection therewith. 1

Fig. 1 shows an-elevational view, partly in section and'partly diagrammatic, of the upper part of a shaft or hole through which the liner assembly is being lowered.

Fig. 2 shows a sectional view of the lower part of the hole with the temporary liner in place,

after removal of the means used in lowering the liner. I

Fig. 3 shows a more detailed view, in section, of

the means for holding the liner assembly at the lower end thereof, during the lowering operation,

Fig. 4 shows a bottom plan view of the said means.

. Fig. 5 shows a sectional view of the meeting" portions of two adjacent sections of pipe and the connecting means and gasket therebetween. Fig. 6 shows a cross sectional view on line 6-6 of Fig.5. I

Fig. 7 shows a sectional view, on a larger scale.

. go of a slot in the wall of the crushable pipe and material of the wall of the well restrained there- The oil well liner |i,'in place (see Fig.2) rests p at its lower end on the bottom of the well and extends upwardly therefrom to a position above 5 that of the strata or level to be tested and, preferably, overlaps the conventional metal casing l2. In this manner, caving in of the well during testing is prevented.

The liner is advantageously constructed of a 10 plurality of sections l3, l4, and I5, numbering sometimes a dozen or more, which are arranged endwise, one above the other, the joints therebetween being closed by the connectors i6 and gaskets l1. I

The connectors and the gaskets, like the sections of pipe themselves, are crushable and adapted to be broken into bits by an oil well drill or the like.

Thus, the sections of pipe are preferably con- 20 stituted of a shaped, highly compressed and densified, and then hardened fibre-reenforced cementitious composition. Thus, there may be usedpipes' constructed of asbestos and Portland cement and of the type now much used in water 25 lines. Where the high strength of such asbestos pipes is not 'necessaryrthere may be used pipes of asbestos-reenforced gypsum, again in highly compressed, densifled, and hardenedfcondition. For some purposes, also, there may be used car- 30 bon pipes.

The connectors aresuitably constructed of a brittle weak cast'iron, abrittleand weak brass,

or other alloy of the general properties stated.

These connectors include suitablya ring element 35 extending inside and above and below the joint between two.sections of pipe and a web element l8 extending outwardly from the said ringele ment and between the ends of the said sections.

The gaskets may be constituted of a cheesy Dbut at least moderately resiliently compressible rubber composition or the like. Thus, there may be used a rubber and/or. neoprene composition including a very large proportion of solid fillers to impart cheesiness. 45

The connectors i6 serve'to keep .the adjacent sections of pipe in alinement and, with the gaskets, to minimize chipping of ends of adjacent sections of pipe.

The sections of pipe in theliner are provided 50 with openings IQ-permitting the passage of fluid therethrough. Preferably, these openings are narrow slots which are staggered with respect to each other, as illustrated.

The width of these narrow apertures is sufliciently large, on the one hand, to permit the flow of the oil therethrough and, on the other hand, sumciently small to restrain passage there through of sand 26- or other solids from the wall openings.

of the hole.

' These openings are suitably tapered in cross section, the narrow portion being exposedon the outer surface of the liner'and the openings becoming wider towards the inside of the liner.

The width of the openings at the narrowest portion thereof should be selected in accordance with the size of the grains of sand or fineness of other material of the wall of the hole, this relathere is employed to advantage the means illustrated inpart in Figs. 1, 3, and 4.

These means include the element ll which engages the lower end of the pipe that is to constitute the .liner and from which there extends the elongated member, as, for instance, the drill 'pipe 22, which extends, at all times, to the top of the hole at least and suitably to a cable elevator such as used for raising articles from an oil well. This elevator is conventional and, therefore, not illustrated.

By means of the gripping means 23 and the said elevator,-which are alternately engaged and disengaged from the drill pipe, sections of the asbestos-cement pipe may be individually placed around the drill pipe and lowered thereonuntil they contact with either the bottom support elemerit 2| or the top of a section of the pipe previously placed around the drill pipe. Additional sections of the drill pipe, also are supplied 'as needed, the union between adjacent sections of the drill pipe being illustrated at 24. c

As the sections of the liner pipe are introduced one by one, the drill pipe is fed into the hole,

meanwhile being supported, at alltimes, either by the said elevator or means 23 adjacent to the entrance to the hole. l

Finally, when all sections oi the pipe desired have, been placed around the drill pipe, with the connectors and gaskets such as shown in Fig. 5 between adjacent sections, the whole assembly is lowered completely into the well, a

suflicient number of sections of drill pipe being added, one by one, to extend from the support means above the well to the bottomof the hole'. When the liner assembly comes to rest on the from the bottom of the liner assembly, as, for intance, by rotation of the drill pipe so as to cause pivoting of the outer parts of the saldelement upon the bolts 25. The said element and elongated member or drill pipe 24 are then removed from the well, the drill pipe being taken apart in sections as it emerges above the top of the hole.

The elongated member may consist in part of an element such as a cable attached to the top of the drill pipe.

The liner. introduced into the hole is allowed to remain there during the period in which the flow of fluid (oil or gas, for tested.

. invention are. intended to be included body portion consisting of a plurality of sections bottom of the hole, the means II are disengaged 4 instance) is being If, as a result of the'test, it is decidedjto drill, to a lowerdepth, it is not necessary to remove the liner before the drilling is resumed.

When the drilling is resumed, the drill. such as one commonly used in a rotary drilling operation, 5 breaks up the crushable pipe, connections, and gaskets into small pieces. The drill may pass through these broken up Harts, although they are preferably. removed, as the drilling progresses,

in the same manner-that is used in removing lo drillings from the well.

It will be understoodthat the details given are for the purpose of illustration, not restriction, and that variations within the spirit of the in the i5 scope of the appended claims. I

What I claim is:

1. A well liner comprising sections of crushable perforated pipe, crushable connectors between the joints of adjacent sections, an end of said liner I0 having projections for engagement with the bottom of a well to hold the liner stationary.

2. A weliliner comprising crushable perforated pipe, a lowering means rotatably releasable from said liner, and means on the lower end of said 28' liner constructedto engage said first-mentioned means when lowering said liner into the well and to penetrate the adjacent soil to prevent rotation of said liner during disengagementof s'aid first-mentioned means from said liner.

3. A well liner comprising a plurality of sections of crushable perforatedpipe,'crushable connectors joining adjacent sections of said pipe, I. rotatably releasable connective device, and means on the lower end of the liner constructed to be engaged by said connective device and to penetrate the. adjacent soil of said well to prevent rotation of the liner during disengagement of said connective device from said liner.

4. In combination with a well liner lowering mechanism having rotatably releasable liner connecting elements, a well liner comprising a plurality'of sections of crushable perforated pipe joined by crushable connectors. and means on the lower end of said liner constructed to be engaged by said elements to facilitate lowering said liner into a well and to penetrate the bottom r of said well to prevent rotation of the liner during disengagement of-said rotatable releasing element from the liner.

5. A well liner comprising sections of crushable perforated pipe, crushable connectors between the joints of adjacent sections, an end of said liner having a plurality of blunt projections for engagement with the bottom of a well to hold- 55 the liner stationary, said projections being formed of frangible material.

6.Adevicetobeusedasatemporarytesting liner in a previously drilled well, comprising .a

of crushable pipe, said device comprising a portion at one end thereof consisting of a plurality of'blunt projections for engagement with the bottom of a well to hold the liner stationary, said projections being formed of frangible ma-.

' terial.

gible material.

' JOHN B. OARROIL. 1g 

